1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally concerned with the connectors used to connect a receiver of any kind to a transmission network of any kind and is more particularly, but not necessarily exclusively, directed to the case of telephone or computer networks carrying low currents at a very low voltage.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A connector of this kind includes two conjugate connection units, namely a socket which is designed to be attached to a support of any kind, for example a wall, and a plug which is adapted to be plugged into the socket and which is designed to be fitted to the cable of the receiver to be connected.
Whether it is a socket or a plug, a connection member of this kind includes contact units to cooperate with the conjugate connection unit and connection terminals within an insulative material body individually connected to the aforementioned contact members by electrical conductors and individually adapted to receive one of the electrical wires to be connected.
The present invention is even more particularly directed to the situation in which the connection terminals employed are insulation displacement connection terminals, i.e. connection terminals which themselves assure the local elimination of the insulative material sheath of the electrical wires to be connected if these electrical wires are insulated electrical wires.
This is the case, for example, in the connection socket which is the subject matter of the French patent published under the number 2 702 096 and filed 22 Feb. 1993 under the number 93 01984.
The insulation displacement connection terminals employed each include at least one connection member having a circumferentially elongate slot about an axis with, coaxially associated with two connection members staggered circumferentially about an axis of this kind, a barrel rotatable about said axis and adapted to force an electrical wire into the slot in each of the connection members, the barrel having for this purpose, in corresponding relationship to the slot in each of the connection members, a passage in which an electrical wire can be engaged.
In the French patent No 93 01984 in question, the two connection members associated with the same barrel are in practise electrically connected to each other, one of them connecting one of the electrical wires to be connected, as indicated hereinabove, and the other being used to establish a tap connection at this point, if required.
As a result, each of these barrels of itself corresponds to only one connection terminal, or in other words there are as many barrels as there are connection terminals.
This system has given satisfaction and may continue to do so.
However, given the relatively large number of barrels to be used, it leads to relatively bulky and costly implementations.
A general object of the present invention is an arrangement whereby this disadvantage is significantly reduced and other advantages are obtained.